How hungry is Florida State for a title repeat?

Sep. 2, 2014
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Jameis Winston, who had a highlight-reel run for a second-half TD, was not at his best Saturday. But if Florida State's performance had any value beyond a W, it was that past performance can't help in the present. / Matthew Emmons. USA TODAY Sports

by George Schroeder, USA TODAY Sports

by George Schroeder, USA TODAY Sports

ARLINGTON, Texas - The answer, according to Jameis Winston, is simple.

"We've just got to get more hungry," the Florida State quarterback said. "You know?"

We should at least have suspected. The Seminoles probably should have, too. Complacency is a nearly universal experience for programs coming off national championships. But after top-ranked Florida State's 37-31 escape Saturday night against Oklahoma State, here's the real problem:

Once you've won it all, how do you get more hungry?

There may not be a simple solution. All offseason, Jimbo Fisher preached that 2013 was finished, that winning the national championship meant exactly nothing this season, that the Seminoles would have to chase everything, all over again. "Don't be the rat that eats the cheese," the coach told them. And then, deep into the fourth quarter of a game they (and everyone else) were expected to easily win, they could easily have lost.

"Hopefully, this will be a good lesson for our guys," Fisher said. "You've got to play great. It's not about being great, it's about playing great."

But given their accomplishments, and a roster loaded with the Heisman Trophy winner and other future NFL draft picks, it's only natural to feel great. Which might be, at least in part, why after jumping to a 17-0 lead, with the rout cued up and ready to roll, everything flipped. An upset brewed for most of the rest of the night. What happened?

"I threw a pick," Winston said.

Actually, he threw two interceptions (and another, right into the hands of a defender Winston never saw, was dropped). The Seminoles settled for field goals instead of touchdowns. Their offense sputtered for much of the night, and only faintly resembled the point machine of 2013.

And Oklahoma State â?? and especially the Cowboys' defense, which sold out to stop the run and swarmed the ball for most of the night â?? played much better than anyone outside their own locker room probably expected. Cowboys quarterback J.W. Walsh made a few plays, running back Tyreek Hill zipped free several times. And somehow, Oklahoma State was in the game late in the fourth quarter with a chance to pull off a stunning upset.

Florida State defensive end Mario Edwards described the Seminoles' mood in the postgame locker room as "very serious," and after praising Oklahoma State, said, "We didn't think we would just win by six."

"Maybe we got a little comfortable after the first quarter," Edwards added. "We kind of fell back from what we were supposed to be doing in our assignments. If we're lined up right and play right, nobody can stop us."

For blown assignments, there was Walsh's 55-yard touchdown pass to Jason Glidden. Somehow, the receiver was completely uncovered.

Florida State sophomore free safety Jalen Ramsey suggested practices leading up to the game were "just OK," adding, "we just got a little too lax (executing in practices), thinking, 'We'll make that play in the games. We'll do that better in the game.'"

Afterward, he and others promised to do better in practices.

The game finally flipped, literally, when junior cornerback P.J. Williams upended Walsh. It was near midfield, late in the fourth quarter. The Cowboys trailed 30-24, but they had momentum (according to Fisher, they had it all game long, right until the very end).

When Walsh bolted around left end, Williams avoided a block, then dove at the quarterback's legs. Walsh turned a somersault, and as he was upside down, the ball dropped free, to the ground. Williams pounced on it. And the Seminoles held on.

"It was a play we needed to make," Williams said.

Winston made plays, too, especially in the second half. His 28-yard bolt for a touchdown on the draw included a stutter-step, a hurdle and finally a submarining dive into the end zone between two players. The clinching score came shortly after Williams' fumble recovery, when Winston pumped once, then threw a 20-yard dart to Rashad Greene, surrounded by three defenders. Greene spun away for a 50-yard touchdown with 3:58 left.

It was still surprising they needed to make those plays. But the script has flipped.

Try as they might to deflect reality â?? "We're not defending last year's title," Williams said, "we're chasing the next one" â?? the Seminoles' greatest challenge this season might be chasing an intangible. Fisher said the players "felt the pressure of being No. 1," and said the scare would go a long way toward ending any lingering complacency, and the Seminoles dutifully repeated the proper talking points: This was "an eye-opener," several players said. "A humbler," Ramsey put it.

"Last year is over," Fisher said. "Tonight, I think, will help us get over it."

It had better. In the end, Florida State's superior talent was enough, but just barely. Winston produced a couple of boneheaded plays, but he was brilliant at important times. He has plenty of weapons available. Defensively, the Seminoles have size and tremendous speed. Combined, it should be enough to overwhelm most of their opponents. The schedule isn't exactly daunting; odds makers have them double-digit favorites against every opponent

But that included the Cowboys.

"We knew it wasn't gonna be an easy battle," Ramsey said. "But we didn't feel like it was gonna be this hard."